LYNN — Not much went right for the KIPP Academy girls basketball team in a 42-20 loss to Northeast at home Monday night.
The loss drops the Panthers, who have lost four games in a row, to 8-7 on the season. KIPP head coach John DePasquale was disappointed with the offensive execution but commended his team’s effort in the loss.
“Our effort was outstanding,” DePasquale said. “Our girls stay positive no matter what. It’s our fourth loss in a row after an 8-3 start. There was a lot of frustration because we weren’t playing sharp. Execution was poor but the effort was phenomenal. Our kids stay positive, they stay together and they stay enthusiastic.
“We just keep trying to fix it, which is the most important step,” DePasquale added. “I’m very pleased with that but having said that we certainly could have executed better and moved the ball better. It’s all about putting the ball in the hole and we didn’t move the ball well enough or get enough quality shots to be able to compete. We are still really a work in progress in that way.”
Naudia Resnek scored three points with five rebounds and three steals for the Panthers while Tatiana Megie-Maddrey added two points and hauled in four rebounds.
Northeast got off to a fast start shooting the basketball. Courtney Sinclair hit an early 3-pointer to put Northeast ahead 5-0. Kayla Keen hit a 3-pointer to help cut the Northeast lead to 9-5 after the first quarter.
That was as close as the Panthers would get. Kayla McLaughlin got Northeast started with two early baskets and Sophia Schiavone hit two 3-pointers to help push the Northeast lead to 12. The offensive run continued in the second quarter with Northeast taking 25-7 lead into the half.
The Panthers defense buckled down a bit in the second half, but a lack of production on the offensive end prevented KIPP from narrowing the lead.
“In the first half they shot extremely well and they didn’t shoot nearly that well in the second,” DePasquale said. “We started pressing more and that caused a few problems. The other thing was they weren’t hitting at nearly the accuracy they had been so it made us look like a better defensive team. We did a pretty good job in the second half on the defensive glass.”
The Panthers put up a game-high eight points in the fourth quarter, but it wasn’t enough to dig themselves out of the hole.
KIPP will look to end the four-game slide in an away game against Mount Alvernia (Newton) Friday (6:30).
“We beat Mount Alvernia in a very close game earlier in the season,” DePasquale said. “We have to see the floor better and understand how to get the ball past length and height. Northeast had some length and height and we didn’t do a good enough job getting the ball around that on the perimeter. We have to do that and use both sides of the floor. Our kids like the right side too much and tend to stay there so we need to stop that.”
